


I was enchanted (to meet you)

by TaytheBae



Series: Because I Need You (In My Pocket) [1]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Magical Realism, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Billy Hargrove Being Less of an Asshole, Cute, Fluff, Good Friend Robin Buckley, I am gay for Robin Buckley, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Magical Realism, Mechanic Billy Hargrove, Mischief, Neil Hargrove is His Own Warning, Not Canon Compliant, Petty Steve Harrington, Silly, Steve Harrington is a Sweetheart, unbetad we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-03-06
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:54:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22876630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TaytheBae/pseuds/TaytheBae
Summary: After graduating from Hawkin's High, Billy Hargrove has decided to live a quiet life, opened his own garage in a little beach-side town, and waiting for... something.That something may just have started.____Previously Titled 'Because I Need You (In My Pocket)' but that's now the name of the series so...
Relationships: Billy Hargrove & Maxine "Max" Mayfield, Billy Hargrove/Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley & Billy Hargrove
Series: Because I Need You (In My Pocket) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1656328
Comments: 16
Kudos: 165





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, it's 2am, and I've been wanting to post my writing forever, and I just said fuck it and decided to post this.
> 
> Also I know this is super short, but there's more to come, maybe probably
> 
> It's kind of inspired by a tumblr post from write-it-motherfuckers.  
> Title is from Take Your Love with Me by Sophie Madeleine.

Billy Hargrove has broken seven alarm clocks in the past three weeks.

Billy Hargrove is not a morning person. Despite this, he always manages to roll out of his _comfortablewarmsoftsafe_ bed at 7am because he isn’t a morning person, but he is a hard working person.

This morning is no different. He huffs, and puffs, but still he climbs out of bed, and jumps in the shower, heating up the water to hold the last remnants of sleepy warmth. Once he gets out of the shower, he heads back into his room, and pulls on a shirt from yesterday, stained with grease and oil, but clean enough. Finds a equally clean pair of blue jeans and tugs those on too. He ties his hair in a rough approximation of a bun, and staggers out of his room for his first cup of coffee. He is just finishing it up, and headed to pick up his keys to leave for the garage, when he sees them.

Wildflowers.

Small, white, soft flowers.

And next to the flowers sits a little plate with fresh strawberries _hisfavorite_ and a still warm piece of toast, golden with no charred edges _hisfavorite_.

It’s such a small, delicate set up in the middle of his dining table, cluttered with grease towels and small car parts he brought home to mess with.

The problem, the reason this sight stops Billy cold and fills him with an antsy sort of confusion, is that Billy lives alone. He made a point of moving far away from anything resembling his past, and the only person who knows where he _ranawayhidleft_ moved is his step-sister Maxine. But she’s miles away, finishing up her time at Hawkin’s High.

He looks around for signs of forced entry, anything out of place, any clues, and comes up short. The door is still locked, the windows closed and blinds shuttered, everything where it should be. So how the _fuck_ did this happen?

Filled with unease, he moves slowly towards the table, as if waiting for something to jump out at him. He gently picks up the plate and walks towards the kitchen. He scrapes the food into the trash, even if he can smell the _sweetdeliciousheavenly_ ripe smell of the strawberries. He can’t bring himself to eat strange food that just… appeared. But he also can’t bring himself to throw away the flowers. With a quick glance at the clock on the stove, he realizes that he’s now late to open the shop, and decides to figure out what to do with the flowers later.

He grabs his keys, wallet, and cigarette pack and heads out the apartment door, triple checking he locks it.

He doesn’t notice the small creature peeking out from behind the blinds, watching him with wide, doe-like eyes and filling with sadness at the strawberries tossed in the trash can.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Billy is lucky he has Robin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh, I guess this is story now? I have a lot of ideas so we'll see where it takes me lol
> 
> Also, bratty!Steve is my favorite after mom Steve ngl

Fuck. It had been a long day at the garage. Even in a small beach town like Bridgeway, someone was always breaking something on their car, and through some ridiculous _chancefatecoincidence_ luck, Billy was the only mechanic within a 30 mile radius. Because of this, he usually had enough to keep him busy, but today was ridiculous. Seemed like everyone and their mother broke something in their car, and Billy had been up to his elbows in grease for what felt like forever.

It had been a long day.

It had been so consuming, Billy had almost forgotten about the _curiousweirdunsettlingintriguing_ bizarre events of the morning. _Almost._ But throughout the absurd amount of standard oil changes and Mr. Heeley’s dead battery and Mrs. Jenkins’ coolant leak, the flowers sitting on Billy’s kitchen table circled in the back of his mind.

Maybe Robin had snuck in and left them as a joke, to unsettle Billy after his latest prank? But why _flowers_? Flowers weren’t Robin’s M.O. She was more likely to leave marbles on his kitchen floor.

So if not Robin, _who?_

Finally, 7pm rolled around, and Billy closed up shop. He walked down the quiet main street of Bridgeway, down the block to his little one-bedroom apartment. He checked the mail on his way up the stairs, and found a little envelope stuck between the usual ads and random flyers. It was Max’s monthly letter, her messy scribble just legible enough to make the trip from Indiana to Michigan.

He wondered what she had written about this time on the way up the two flights of stairs to his apartment, and was busy looking through the rest of his mail as he unlocked his door and opened it, so it wasn’t until he went to put the stack on his kitchen table that he noticed the junk that had littered the surface was just

_Gone._

The table was clearer than it had ever been, empty except for the little white flowers that had been there this morning. But it wasn’t just the little white flowers. Bright yellow flowers with long green stems had joined the mix.

_What the actual fuck._

_Nope. Nope. Nopenopenope._ Billy was not doing this. He moved to Bridgeway to live a _peacefulsimplesafe_ quiet life, trying to stash away enough money to move to California once Max finally graduates and they can both _getawayfromNeil_. He didn’t sign up for a _creepyscarysweet_ weird stalker who breaks in and

What?

Cleans his clutter and makes him breakfast and brings him flowers?

Maybe he’s finally losing it. Finally cracking up.

He calls Robin. She picks up on the third ring.

“Robin’s Babysitting Services, how can I help you manage your little gremlins?” She sounded weirdly out of breath, as if she ran to the phone, or more likely was fighting a heard of small people.

“Having fun Buckley?”

“Fu.. fudge you Hargrove, you know I got stuck with the twins today and they didn’t get a nap so they’re absolute- Erica, stop it! Put that down!- What do you need, Hargrove?” She sounded exhausted.

“Have you been breaking in and cleaning my shit?” He asks, even though he already knows the answer, hopeful for a simple yes so he could shrug off the unease pooling in his stomach. 

“Hargrove, I can’t even keep my own apartment clean for more than 7 seconds. Why would I come clean your messes- Lucas, I said _no!”_

“If it’s not you, then someone else has been sneaking in while I’m gone and cleaning up.”

“What? Who? You can’t just drop a mystery like this on me while I’m saddled with two terrible monsters. Speaking of, Erica is trying to make Lucas eat crayons. Mrs. Sinclaire gets home in half an hour. I’ll be over then. Make spaghetti. Bye.” And before Billy can argue about Robin barging in and demanding food, she hangs up and leaves him listening to the dial tone. _Damn it._

Billy sighed, and set about preparing for Hurricane Robin. He went to start on the spaghetti she had demanded, when he realized something else _strangecreepyuncomfortable_ unusual.

All of his spoons had gone missing.

All of them. Even the ones that had been sitting in the sink, waiting for him to clean them.

Deeply unsettled by this revelation, Billy set about checking every cabinet, drawer, crook and nanny in the kitchen. He even checked the fucking fridge. He was so preoccupied with the hunt for his _fucking spoons what the actual fuck_ , that he didn’t hear Robin come in. Not until she was right behind him, bent over to whisper “Boo” in his ear.

He did not squeak. Billy Hargrove does not squeak. He did, however, bash his head on a shelf in the fridge and have his collection of beers from the local brewery shake threateningly.

He whipped around to face Robin, ready to bitch about the impending headache, when he noticed what she was carrying.

“What the actual fuck are you holding?” She rolled her eyes, as if Billy was the slow one for not knowing what the tangle of wires and electric pieces in her arms were meant to be.

“It’s spy equipment, dingus. Ya’ know, to catch your secret admirer.”

“Secret admirer?”

“Yeah. The whoever is leaving you flowers, and making you food, and cleaning up your apartment, which is so desperately needed by the way.” She said the last part with a pointed look at his sink full of dishes and cluttered counters.

“Listen here Buckley. I don’t need your shit.”

“Then why did you call me at 7pm sounding like you're seriously wigging out?”

Billy sighed and moved to sit on his beat-up couch, giving up the hunt for his missing utensils. Robin set the mass of wires _were those binoculars? What is she planning to do with binoculars?_ and went to sit next to him.

“I think they stole my spoons, Robin. _My spoons._ This isn’t some fucking game. It’s creepy stalker level shit.”

“Wait, like your actual spoons?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure I know when all my fucking spoons disappear.”

“Shut up. Has anything else gone missing? Your rings, coins, anything shiny like that?”

“Not that I know of? Kind of gotten distracted by the lack of spoons anywhere.”

“Billy. What do you know about fairy tales?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! Comments/kudos are great motivators :D
> 
> *Side Note: I hate writing dialogue, so if anyone has tips please share! I'm also looking for a beta for a longer au I'm currently working on, but I have no clue how to start looking for one...*


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight angst, Billy has a nightmare. Neil is a dick.

“Billy. What do you know about fairy tales?”

“Like… little magical people and elves and shit?” Billy rolled his eyes and stood to get off the couch. “What does that have to do with my missing spoons?”

“My nanna, she grew up in Ireland. Used to tell me all these fairy tales. Her favorite was about a fairy who would sneak into the house of the human she loved and perform small tasks as acts of courtship. _Things like cleaning up and cooking food._ ”

“And stealing silverware?” He threw over his shoulder as he went to actually start the spaghetti Robin had demanded originally.

“I’m getting to that, shut up. Anyway, this guy didn’t believe in fairies, just thought he was blessed by God or some shit. He ended up getting married to another woman, and on the night of their wedding, anything shiny in his house just disappeared. Whoosh. Gone forever. The fairy felt betrayed by him for rejecting her offerings.”

“ So… you’re telling me I have, what, a fairy admirer who's upset that I threw away their courting offers? That’s such horseshit Robin!” he laughed. “Faries aren’t real. It’s probably some weird ass person stalking me.”

“In Bridgeview? Where everyone knows everything? That’s less likely than the faires. Come on Hargrove. Just… humor me? We’ll set a fairy trap tonight and see what happens. If it doesn’t work, you can make fun of me all you want and shit.” She said as she stood and walked into the kitchen area.

He eyed her contemplatively. This was _ridiculousnonsensebullshit_ absurd. He did not have a fucking magical lover who wanted to court him through fucking flowers and toast. But, as he looked at her face, she looked so damn _happyexcited_ eager to catch some magic thing, acting like Max when he got her that skateboard for Christmas.

“What goes in to this _fairy trap_ you’re thinking of?”

With that one question, she was off like a rocket, bouncing around and throwing ideas over her shoulder. Billy could gather that this was all based around these stories her Nanna told her, from a dish of milk to soft candle light to what sounded like _actual_ traps. All of it sounded ridiculous to Billy, but he was amused at Robin’s enthusiasm, so he let her hop around the kitchen and living room, forming a plan on how to ‘catch his fairy’.

“Whoa, when did this go from the fairy to _my_ fairy?” Billy _whinedcomplained_ huffed.

“Uh, duh. When they decided to court you!” and with that, she rattled off a list of materials she would need, most of which he actually had. He gathered the materials, placing them in a heap on his now clean dining table, and looked at Robin for further instructions.

_Jesus, when did this become my life?_

She examined the pile carefully, and then began arranging them. Billy couldn’t make heads or tails of what she was constructing, but she seemed intent on her project, so he left her to it, and went to order a pizza, considering the pasta cooking a bust considering he hadn't even started boiling noodles yet.

Just as he got off the phone with the local pizza joint, he heard a cheer from the other room, and went to check out what Robin had been able to construct from her random materials.

He walked over to the table and inspected her _fairy trap_. It actually kind of resembled a simple animal trap, a tupperware lid held up by a long wooden spoon that had somehow survived the spoon purge. Inside the tupperware, where the bait would be, was three of Billy’s shiniest rings and some bits of a cookie he had left over from Robin’s latest baking endeavor. Overall, it was pretty simple, but Robin assured that her Nanna had said this type of trap had a high effective rate. _Like Billy really thought there was a fairy in his apartment._

With the trap constructed, Robin placed it carefully in the center of his dining table and declared there wasn’t anything else to do but check back in the morning. She also decided that since tomorrow is Saturday and neither of them had work, she would sleepover.

So, Billy and Robin hung out, just like any Friday night. They ate pizza, threw back a couple beers, and watched _Big Trouble in Little China_ , again. Robin loved to make fun of Billy, saying he was _ridiculously_ similar to Kurt Russell, and Billy was just content to not watch another Disney movie with stupid ass songs that Robin sang, so very off key. Half-way through the movie, Robin passed out on the couch, so Billy tossed the throw blanket he keeps on the back of the couch over her, cleans up their dinner, and goes to bed.

_Billy is young again. Possibly third grade, judging by his hair. He’s sitting at a small campfire next to the ocean with his mom right next to him, whispering in his ear. She’s telling him stories from her childhood. Her blue eyes sparkle in the fire light, and the stars twinkle above them. In the dim lighting, with his mom’s gentle cadence weaving stories of giant dragons and tiny fairies in his ear, magic really does seem possible._

_Suddenly, the scene shifts._

_Billy is a little older, but not by much. Closer to fifth grade. He’s bent over a small trap, his tongue sticking out between his teeth in concentration. He’s so focused he doesn’t hear the footsteps approaching him. He does, however, notice the looming shadow cover his small trap. He looks up to see his father. Even at the young age of 9 years old, he has learned how much his father’s fists hurt. Seeing Neil hover over him, Billy froze where he sat, shoulders hunched to make himself smaller._

_“What are you making, boy?”_

_Billy knew what the truth would get him, but lying always made it worse, so he stuttered out a weak, “It’s a trap f-for faries.” He hunched his shoulders even further, and focused on his father’s boots._

_“What did I tell you about that shit? No son of mine is going to be a fucking sissy.”_

_As the boot he was so focused on came closer to his hunched body,_

Billy shot up out of bed. He frantically tried to figure out where he was, eyes darting around. Sunlight streamed through the shutters on the window to the left of his bed, grease stained clothes scattered on the floor, and a single framed photo of him and Max on his graduation day. He focused on the photo, noticed how the lighting makes Max’s hair look like gentle fire, and the genuine smiles on both their faces.

Billy’s graduation had been a good day.

Centered, Billy felt his breathing settle and the sweat cool on his skin. He grimaced and climbed out of bed, heading to the shower. On his way, he heard Robin quietly shuffle around his kitchen. A small squeal was all the warning he got before he had an armful of Robin. She was giggling and muttering a litany of _I told you so_.

“What are you on about now Buckley?”

“We got him! We got your fairy!”

“Bullshit.”

“Go see for yourself,” and with that, he was pushed down the short hallway towards the main area.

The trap was sitting on the dining table, in the same place it had been placed last night. Shuffling closer, he noticed a small, brown lump nestled amongst the rings that hadn’t been there when he had gone to bed. _Holy Shit, she was right._

Billy lowered himself so he was eye level with the table and peered into the clear side of the tupperware. Upon closer inspection, he noticed the lump moving up and down slowly, in a steady rhythm. He looked over his shoulder at Robin, who was bouncing on the balls of her feet, decidedly more awake than she had been five minutes ago.

“Well, fuck. Now what?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this story is 'complete', but I'll add one-shots in the same universe as the inspiration strikes. I have some cute ideas about Steve just, taking care of Billy and eventually Max.
> 
> Thank you for the support on my first fanfic! It's been fun and an amazing way to add to a community I love so much.
> 
> *EDIT* I made a writing tumblr! @harringrovetrashh please come and talk about all stranger things stuff!
> 
> Comments and kudos make my day!


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